Laundry Night
by Nova Fearnewood
Summary: When Walter's washing machine breaks, he ends up going to the laundromat where he finds Paige in the exact same predicament. Fluff with a light dusting of smut ensues! (Rated at T because smut is really non-explicit, but if you aren't comfortable with vague adult themes, please move along).


"Son of a bitch.", Walter muttered as his washing machine sputtered pitifully before stopping mid cycle. It had been acting up for weeks now and he had already told Happy about it, because her hands were small enough to fit in the machine to repair it (and she was the only person Walter trusted to not void the warranty), but she and Toby were up north for a car show this weekend and wouldn't be back until Sunday night.

Unfortunately, Walter needed clothes by tomorrow.

With an agitated huff, he fished his laundry out of the washer and threw it into a contractor bag, gathered the remainder of his dirty laundry and packed up his car before heading off to the laundromat.

"This is what I get for putting off laundry until Friday night...", Paige muttered as she pressed the start button on her washing machine and felt her stomach sink when nothing happened.

"Well, I guess I'm spending the night at the laundromat...", she sighed.

Ralph was with Sylvester for the weekend and they were going to a Comic-Con, so at least she didn't have to worry about him being home alone.

With a sigh, she gathered up the laundry and got in her car before heading to the laundromat down the block. She groaned when she saw the crowd at her usual laundromat and reluctantly drove to the only other one she knew of; the one closest to the garage.

She pulled up in the parking lot and didn't notice the car that pulled up next to her until she got out.

She recognized Walter immediately.

"Walter? What are you doing here?", Paige asked, surprised by the genius's presence there.

Walter looked over at the sound of Paige's light voice and there, on the other side of his car, stood Paige.

Walter couldn't help the way his heartbeat increased, nor could he help the smile that came to his lips whenever he saw her.

"Hi Paige, I'm uh... My washing machine broke and Happy's not in town to fix it, so I had to come here...what are you doing here? I thought there was a laundromat closer to where you lived."

Paige blushed at Walter's reaction to seeing her and replied, "My washer wouldn't start and the line was pretty bad at my local place... This was the only other 24-hour laundromat that I knew of..."

Walter nodded and Paige said, "Well, I better get in there if I want to get several machines close to one another..."

"Y-Yeah... Definitely...", Walter stammered and felt his face grow hot as he went back to pulling out his bag of wet clothes and placing them in a rolling cart with his dry, dirty laundry. He looked over and saw Paige struggling to keep her clothes from falling on the ground while trying to lock her car.

"Here... Let me help you with that.", Walter said, rolling his basket over to her and Paige murmured her thanks as Walter locked her car.

They walked in together and found washing machines right next to each other. Paige and Ralph's laundry took up four machines and Walter's occupied two.

Walter looked away as Paige tossed a pair of dark red lace panties into one machine, blushing furiously as he tried not to imagine the beautiful liaison lying on his bed wearing nothing but those panties and a sultry smile.

Paige wanted to break the silence so badly and once their laundry was tumbling around in the machines, they sat down next to each other on the bench.

"So Ralph's with Sly?", Walter asked, trying to break the ice.

"Mhm.", Paige hummed and nodded. "They're going to a Comic-Con tomorrow. Ralph is so excited.", she replied, wringing her hands.

"You're anxious...", Walter murmured and Paige smiled and looked at him.

"If you can tell, it must be pretty obvious.", she replied, nudging his shoulder gently and making the genius smile.

"I've known you for three years, Paige, I've noticed things about you that can tell me about your current mood and even your emotions.", he replied.

"Oh?", Paige replied, raising her eyebrows at his words, trying not to look into his dark brown eyes and failing miserably as she got caught in his gaze, "What else have you noticed about me?"

Walter couldn't tell her all the things he noticed, it would take a long time and probably freak her out a little (or a lot), so he chose his words carefully.

"You play with your hair whenever you're deep in thought. When you smile, your eyes seem to smile too. You bite your lip and dig your nails into your palms when you're angry or about to cry. When you're relieved, you place your hand to your chest and when you're scared for Ralph's safety, you put a hand on your abdomen.", Walter met her eyes and saw an emotion there that he couldn't place, but it was warm and it felt good and they were suddenly quite close to each other.

Paige glanced between Walter's lips and eyes like she had prior to that first kiss they shared.  
Walter felt his heart rate increase as he chose his next words.

"And when you want me to kiss you, you glance between my eyes and mouth...H-How did I do? Was that accurate?"

Paige blushed.  
"It all seems correct to me.", she replied before leaning towards him.

Walter closed his eyes and waited for her lips to press against his, not even caring for once that they would be engaging in PDA, but their washers began beeping and Paige pecked him on the cheek instead and smiled softly at him when he opened his eyes.

"I know how PDA makes you feel...", she replied, standing up to get her laundry out of the washers, "I know you well enough to know that it makes you uncomfortable. Forgive me for not wanting to cause you any discomfort."

Walter nodded as he retrieved his laundry and placed it in the basket.

She was right.

They rolled their laundry over to the dryers and Paige selected three; one small one for the delicate items and two larger machines for everything else belonging to her and Ralph.

"Do you have anything that needs to be dried on a low setting? I'd hate to waste my money on just a few things.", Paige asked.

Walter fished through his clothes and retrieved some lightweight basketball shorts that he usually slept in and a few neckties.

"It's not much, but it'll balance the load.", he offered.

"Thanks." Paige replied, chucking them in with her unmentionables.

As they watched their laundry spinning, Walter caught Paige yawning and spoke up.

"You know, if you want to drop by the garage after this, you're more than welcome…I think there might be something about black holes on NOVA tonight after Masterpiece Theater, if you're interested…", Walter said, not really caring what was on TV as long as he and Paige were alone because he desperately wanted to finish what they had started earlier.

Paige looked at him and nodded.

"I'd like that very much.", she replied, even though she had little interest in black holes. All she wanted was to be alone with Walter so she could kiss him properly.

Paige went to the restroom and Walter was left with his thoughts.

The logical and rational half of his brain was telling him to stop and think about all the ways this could fall apart but the other half was telling him (in a voice that sounded strangely like Megan) to not be afraid, to sweep Paige off her feet, and to worship her like a goddess.

Little did he know that Paige was having similar thoughts.

Paige patted a wet paper towel on her forehead and neck, trying to cool down.

Half of her was telling her she should go straight home with her laundry and call it a night, but her other half was screaming for her to go with Walter. She was nervous because if she went home, Walter would probably think that she didn't like him anymore and if she went with Walter and tried to make a move but Walter wasn't interested, she would have made a fool out of herself and probably drive Walter away from her.

She would be lying to herself if she said that she hadn't thought about Walter's hands all over her, about how he would touch her when there was nothing between them, and about how he would feel as he moved above her and within her. She wanted him and she longed for the physical intimacy that she had been lacking for so many years.

Oh God, what if she was terrible at sex after all these years? What if Walter didn't know that she was in love with him and had been for the longest time?

Paige put her head in her hands and groaned internally before sighing and deciding to go with Walter and take a chance, to be brave, and with that, she left the bathroom.

Walter was pacing as he watched his necktie tangle up with that pair of her dark red lacy panties. There couldn't be a better metaphor for his life since he had met Paige and gotten wrapped up and drawn in. Now he was, like his necktie, hopelessly tangled up in Paige and everything she was.

Surprisingly enough, he found it easier than normal to quiet the logical side and go with his burgeoning emotions this time.

Perhaps he was changing after all.

When Paige came over, she spoke up.

"I'd love to come over after we're done here, which, judging by our dryer timers, should be very soon…"

Walter felt his heart leap and nodded.

"Okay, yeah, of course…", he said, unsure of how to reply.

The sorting and folding processes took very little time, especially with the way they worked together, and soon, Paige was pulling into the garage next to Walter.

" _This is it, now don't screw up!",_ Walter thought to himself as he opened Paige's car door and helped her to her feet, even though she could have managed very well on her own. He never forgot their first undercover case where they posed as a wealthy couple at an art gala, how he had neglected to help her from the vehicle and escort her into the gala.

"Thank you, Walter.", Paige replied with a smile and, as they crossed into the main garage and as Walter took her hand, something shifted in them.

He pulled her closer the second they rounded the corner, the scent of fabric softener and the glow of computer monitors providing their ambiance.

Walter's eyes fell on hers and he whispered, "Please tell me if this is all wrong…"

Paige saw how terrified he was of making a mistake and she shushed him softly and wrapped her arms around his neck.

"This is fine, we'll go as fast or as slow as you want to."

"What about you?", He asked, concern permeating his voice.

"Walter, I've wanted this for so long…We can go fast or slow, I don't mind, just as long as we get there together..."

"I-I don't want this to be just a one-time thing…", Walter eked out as Paige drew nearer,

"P-Paige…you're…you're it for me and I don't mean to scare you or put some huge pressure on you and I'm sorry, but it's the truth."

"Walter.", Paige sighed and placed her hands to his cheeks, "You're it for me too…There is absolutely nobody in the world that I'd rather be with than you, I mean that.

Walter sighed and murmured, "I'm so happy you said that…"

"Oh?"

"Ever since the first time we kissed, I regretted not doing this.", Walter replied and pulled Paige to his body, fisting into her dark waves as he pressed his lips to hers.

Paige practically melted into his embrace and gasped as the intensity knocked her off balance.

Walter kept her steady and his strong arms wrapped around her, holding her close.

Their kisses were intense and soon, they broke apart for air as they began to sloppily ascend to the loft, clothes were dropped on the stairs and forgotten as skin met skin and they both sighed.

Paige giggled as the last of their clothes were removed and Walter, displaying his hidden strength, lifted her up and tossed her gently on the bed where she landed with a soft bounce. Walter wasn't far behind, crawling over her to lavish attention to her body, drawing the most amazing sounds out of her with his hands and mouth before he slipped into her with little resistance. They rocked in tandem, matching each other perfectly as they both rushed closer and closer to their completion, echoing each other's names up until they finished.

As they laid there in each other's arms, panting and satisfied, Walter pressed his lips to Paige's forehead.

"I'm so glad my washer broke.", Paige murmured, nuzzling closer.

"Hmm, me too…", Walter replied.

"I'm also glad that Ralph's with Sly, that way I can stay the night, that is, if you'd take me….", she replied coyly.

Walter glanced down at her and grinned.

"Give me a couple more minutes and I'll definitely take you."

Paige sighed contentedly.

"Well, at least I have a change of clothes for whenever I leave this bed.", She stated before glancing at Walter before wiggling her eyebrows.

Walter laughed with her as they cuddled, both of them so relieved that something as irksome as mechanical failure could end in pure bliss.


End file.
